Gonzales Grilled over Torture Policy -- While there was a collective sigh of relief from civil libertarians and American patriots at the news John Aschroft was bowing out as Attorney-General, a gasp of horror arose with the nomination of Alberto Gonzales to replace him. Mr. Gonzales, as White House counsel, is the legal mind behind the memos that permit torture of terror suspects and the fellow who dubbed the Geneva Convention as “quaint.” Yesterday’s hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee did nothing to calm those who thought (wrongly?) that no one could be worse than Mr. Ashcroft.

France to Create Industrial Innovation Agency -- Dirigisme is alive and well in Jacques Chirac’s France. The French President wants to take some of the money from privatizing Airbus Industries to make sure the country can produce “the Airbuses of tomorrow.” This idea is a slippery one. If he does it right, it could benefit all of Europe, not just France. But if he starts picking national champions and tossing government money at them, he may as well just toss the money in the Seine.

US Chamber of Commerce Head Slams New York AG Eliot Spitzer -- Crusading prosecutors are a dangerous bunch. By virtue of the power of their office, they have the ability to make life miserable for anyone who comes into their cross-hairs. When drug lords, Mafiosi and that ilk are brought into court, there is no doubt as to their value. When businessmen find themselves in the dock, the law shouldn’t apply. At least, that’s what U.S. Chamber of Commerce president and chief executive Thomas Donohue seemed to tell the press earlier this week when he tore into New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer.

Ashlee Simpson Booed at Orange Bowl -- After the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” during last year’s Super Bowl, watching halftime shows of football games has become a source of amusement rather than tedium. Still, only the really big games have their halftime festivities televised; for the rest, it’s some high school or college marching band doing their salute to condiments. The Orange Bowl this year counted as the college championship game, and so was a very big one indeed. Far bigger than USC’s drubbing of Oklahoma was the crowd jeering Ashlee Simpson, heretofore, a popular songstress.